Monday, January 16, 2012

I Still Read: Supernaturally and Mockingjay

Hey readers, whoever you are.  I'm still quite busy, but I'm still always in the middle of something.  I just finished a couple of books.  First Supernaturally.  Let me tell you, I enjoyed this book even less than the first one in the series.  It had the same obnoxious main character with less of an interesting plot.  I don't know if I'll even read the third (though my obsessive compulsive tendencies make me want to).
One thing I did enjoy is the idea of a vampire that feeds on the blood of other supernatural beings for increased power.  It wasn't focused on very much in the book, but I think that's a concept that should be further explored and written about.

After I finished Supernaturally I re-read Mockingjay.  It was only my third time through the book which is quite strange since I LOVE the Hunger Games series.  I realized the problem about two-thirds of the way though and I'll let you in on the secret.  There are spoilers ahead, but I'm posting them anyway because the book has been out for well over two years at this point.
It's all about Peeta.  Don't get me wrong.  I don't think the love story aspects of the series are the main reason to read.  This is not Twilight or anything like unto it.  But in Catching Fire and even the first book you could always count on Peeta.  When everything else in the world of Panem was going to hell in a hand basket (please pardon my language), Peeta was always there being good, being strong, and loving Katniss no matter what.  Then comes Mockingjay and Peeta is captured and his brain is hijacked.  The worst part? He never gets better.  It's not like the end of the story comes and Plutarch and Beetee come up with a great solution to get his memories of Katniss back to their normal state.  Nope.  He gets through part of it and is able to control himself, but even at the end he has to occasionally brace himself on a chair to fight the memories altered by the tracker jacker venom.  Thanks, Suzanne Collins, for ripping the rug out from under me and removing my heart from my chest and NOT EVEN BOTHERING TO PUT THEM BACK.  

In conclusion, yes.  Mockingjay is a wonderful book with an amazing plot and a great twist at the end, but it will never be my favorite in the series because of all that was taken from me (and all of the readers for that matter).

Oh, and one last note: if you haven't read The Hunger Games yet, just get on it already!  Don't wait on a list at the library, go buy the book or order it on amazon and read it.  I haven't heard of anyone yet that didn't love it.

The book I'm reading right now is religious in nature so I won't be blogging about it here, but a post about Harry Potter is coming soon.